Packed #Murrieta Town Hall Meeting Sounds Warning Against Illegal Alien Invasion!

The place is jam-packed!

My buddy Douglas Gibbs has this, "Murrieta Town Hall Meeting Tonight: Illegal Immigration."

And seen on Twitter just now:

#Murrieta #Immigration: Crowd erupts in applause as Cnty Supervisor demands fed gov "immediately secure our borders"

— Robert Kovacik (@RobertNBCLA) July 3, 2014

#Murrieta #Immigration: Standing ovation, chants of "USA" about buses turned back by protestors. pic.twitter.com/8H54UHsMB5

— Robert Kovacik (@RobertNBCLA) July 3, 2014

#Murrieta #Immigration: (2 of 2) Hundreds wait outside to enter already packed Town Hall. pic.twitter.com/olJw5Ntr7u

— Robert Kovacik (@RobertNBCLA) July 3, 2014

#Murrieta #Immigration: (1 of 2) View from inside Town Hall... pic.twitter.com/IsIeaFoLx1

— Robert Kovacik (@RobertNBCLA) July 3, 2014

Flyers being passed out warning people about communicable diseases from immigrants in Murrieta. pic.twitter.com/OWSYyzzfEx

— Saul Gonzalez (@SaulKCRW) July 3, 2014

Crowd outside Murrieta town hall testy, a lot of verbally sparring. I've heard quite a few Latino slurs. pic.twitter.com/lNvljdz7e3

— Kyung Lah (@KyungLahCNN) July 3, 2014

More:

Andrea Tokunaga of Murrieta holding signs in front of auditorium. "We can do whatever we need to do lovingly." pic.twitter.com/9PCMjNbHSR

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Murrieta T-shirt wearing man gets heart round of applause from people in line. pic.twitter.com/chvNuXy2Eq

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Mayor Long says there is still long line of people trying to get in. Comment greeted by raucous applause. #TownHall

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

"Change needs to occur at the federal level in many ways." -- Murrieta Mayor Alan Long, talking about immigration crisis

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Supervisor Jeff Stone blasts federal government for "exploiting" traumatized women and children. #TownHall

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Huge response to Stone's call for secure borders. #TownHall

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Crowd jeers FEMA, which was supposed to test immigrants. Cheers protesters who turned back buses. Standing ovation. "USA! USA!"

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Lack of political will to protect our borders, Stone says. Crowd stands for second ovation as the Supervisor wraps speech. #TownHall

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Gibbs said facility here not designed for large-scale processing. "That is not humanitarian. That is not what SW Riverside County is about."

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Gibbs compared facility to a jail. #TownHall

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Dr. Cameron Kaiser of county health addresses possibility of diseases spreading from immigrant transfer. "Clearly the risk is not zero."

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Chief Patrol Agent Paul Beeson addressing situation in South Texas. #TownHall

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Chief Patrol Agent Paul Beeson addressing situation in South Texas. #TownHall

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

1,200 arrests in day in Rio Grande Valley, 77 percent not from Mexico. #TownHall

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Beeson taking responsibility for decision to send immigrants to Murrieta. Hearing it from audience members. "Send them back!"

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Dave Jennings of LA Border Patrol office says there in no capacity to detain a family unit. Says role is to help them get to a destination.

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Small group of people applaud that policy. "They're going to go to a proceeding with a judge ... " Groan from audience

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Two of the four immigrants hospitalized had scabies. Two had fevers.

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

Speaker asks about costs to city. Mayor Long says spending on this issue will be tracked. Plans to send "big fat bill" to D.C.

— PE_Claverie (@PE_Claverie) July 3, 2014

AUDIO: Vote-Challenging Conservatives Crash Thad Cochran Conference Call — #MSSen

This is hilarious, at Roll Call, "Thad Cochran Conference Call Descends Into Chaos."

And the Jackson Clarion-Ledger, "Cochran presser: Most entertaining conference call ever."

Charles C. Johnson helped crash the party, heh.

The dude is inside the loop and inside the GOP establishment's head.

Press conference details... Crash it with me in fifteen minutes? Call is 3 PM CST Tuesday Call in number: 530-881-1000. PIN: 287517# #mssen
— Charles C. Johnson (@ChuckCJohnson) July 2, 2014

Listen to the audio here.

Carmen Electra Super Smokin' Hot in Galore Magazine Summer 2014

Heh.

At Egotastic!, "Carmen Electra Swimsuit Crazy Sextastic in Galore."

BIOWAR! Third World Aliens Flood U.S. Borders with H1N1 Swine Disease, Other Deadly Pathogens

At the San Antonio Express-News, "Two more migrant children diagnosed with swine flu in Valley."

And at CBS News Dallas, "Texas Border Sheriffs Concerned About Strained Budgets, Disease."



PREVIOUSLY: "Murrieta: After 72-Hour Hold, 95 Percent of Dumped Illegal Aliens Blow Off 'Notice to Appear' in Deportation Court."

Murrieta: After 72-Hour Hold, 95 Percent of Dumped Illegal Aliens Blow Off 'Notice to Appear' in Deportation Court

So far it looks like Murrieta remains scheduled for additional busloads of migrants, and local patriots aren't backing down. At CBS News Los Angeles, "Murrieta Official Warns Immigration Protests Likely ‘Every Time’ Buses Arrive."

The "Murrieta official" is Mayor Pro-Tem Harry Ramos.

And my good friend Douglas Gibbs posted excerpts from his radio interview with Ramos, who says virtually all of the illegal migrants bail out on their deportation hearings after their release from 72-hour hold:

Murrieta City Council Member and Mayor Pro-Tem Harry Ramos spoke out against what is going on during the Constitution Radio program on KCAA AM1050 on June 28, 2014, calling the refusal to act by fellow Republicans a part of the "Matrix Effect," explaining that, "Most of our information is second hand as well, and I think that is one of the travesties in all of this, is that we have yet to get any official word from the federal government on their plans. Most of the information we are getting is from sources within the Border Patrol. From what we understand is that for about a month now there's been plans to start shipping in a lot of the illegal aliens that come in through Texas and Arizona into Murrieta - we've been trying to be pro-active and get information and stop this before this happens and two times we were under the notion that it has been stopped. . . 200 illegals every seventy two hours. . . mostly other than Mexican nationals. . . coming into our area. . . the truth is, you hit the nail on the head, when you read the newspapers and listen to the TV shows, they're all saying they're being processed. Well, a part of the process is releasing them. The biggest problem. . . since they are not mostly Mexican, based on the law, they have to have a court hearing. And by law they can only hold someone before they can have a court case for 72 hours. So what happens is, the reason why it's 72 hours, they release them, they give them either a bus ticket or leave them within the area, and then they are supposed to come back I believe within ten or fifteen days, I don't remember the exact number, to, for a court hearing. And quite frankly, I've heard heard numbers as high as 95% do not come back, for a court hearing. . . illegal immigration has always been a national security issue, there are more than one way of tearing down a country. It doesn't take bombs. There are other ways philosophically you can destroy a nation as well. . . Unfortunately. . . the conversation is being drawn towards a humanitarian or people issue, where we're heartless and racists [as republicans]. . . this is not the city councils' doing. This is not a republican issue. And this is actually a winning issue, if you just looked at what is going on. Why isn't the Republican Party, and everybody else, standing up and pointing this out. . . I think it's, I like to call it the Matrix Effect. If you start giving information to people, and people start to realize that they are not in this, this perfect utopia, people start to wake up, and in essence, getting unplugged. Then they start to ask questions. You see, Doug, we all know that information is truly power, and, quite frankly, there have been many attacks on our Constitution and freedoms that I think one of the biggest, to date, threats to our freedoms is the lack of questions, and the blind and quiet press we have today. . . But you can't petition [the government] if you don't know there's a problem."

PREVIOUSLY: "Near Rioting in #Murrieta Overnight as Obama Regime Dumps Illegal Aliens on Patriot Community."

Sandra Fluke Decries Hobby Lobby Decision's 'Attack on Women'

My good friend Bree was cracking me up on Twitter this morning:

Hahahahahaha IF I DON'T HAVE SEX I WILL DIE, OKAY? @SandraFluke @washingtonpost

— Bree :) (@bree_mars) July 2, 2014

Flows for the hoes with low self-esteem --> @SandraFluke

— Bree :) (@bree_mars) July 2, 2014

And, FWIW, here's Ms. Fluke's (rhymes with fuck), at the Washington Post, "The Hobby Lobby case is an attack on women."

Revenge Murder? Israelis Blamed for Kidnapping and Burning to Death Palestinian Teenager

At the Sydney Morning Herald, "Cycle of revenge fear after Palestinian teen killing."

And at Telegraph UK, "Israelis blamed for kidnapping and burning to death Palestinian teenager in suspected revenge attack":

In an apparent revenge attack for the murder of three Israeli teenagers, Mohammed Abu Khiedir, 16, was spirited away from his Jerusalem neighbourhood.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict stood on the edge of a dangerous precipice on Wednesday night after an Arab youth was abducted and murdered in a suspected revenge killing for the deaths of three Jewish teenagers.

Violent clashes broke out in East Jerusalem’s Shuafat neighbourood after a burnt body was discovered in a forest in the city’s Jewish-dominated western sector shortly before dawn. It was said to be that of Mohammed Abu Khiedir, 16, who had been reported missing when his family told police he had been abducted from outside a shop near his home in the area.

The youth - an electrical engineering student at a vocational school - was said by relatives to have been forced by three men into a car as he waited for early morning prayers to begin at a mosque next to his home.

His remains were so badly charred that police declined to show them to the youth’s father, Hussein, the owner of an electrical shop. He was instead being identified using DNA samples from his parents.

The murder drew international condemnation, including from David Cameron, the Prime Minister, who called it “appalling”, and William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, who said it was “vital” that those responsible “be held accountable”.

More.

I'll have more on the Middle East throughout the day...

Added: From the Jerusalem Post, "Hundreds of Arabs riot across Jerusalem after Palestinian teen found murdered." (At Memeorandum.)

'By categorizing all disagreement as hate, feminists are attempting to dictate rules of discourse whereby they win every argument simply by virtue of the fact that they possess vaginas...'

Robert Stacy McCain has a great essay on actor and television personality Adam Richman, who was targeted by radical feminists after losing 70 pounds and bragging about it with an innocuous hashtag on Twitter, "#thinspiration."

See, "What @AdamRichman Learned."

What do you MEAN you haven't seen Man Vs Food's @adamrichman pose NAKED for Cosmo? http://t.co/1hrLQucSOp pic.twitter.com/KAoSBUgLRF

— Cosmopolitan UK (@CosmopolitanUK) June 13, 2014

I saw this "fight" earlier at xoJane, "I GOT INTO A NASTY FIGHT WITH "MAN VS. FOOD"'S ADAM RICHMAN ON INSTAGRAM AFTER I CALLED HIM OUT FOR USING THE "THINSPIRATION" TAG."

At least click the link to see Richman's responses in screencaps.

'President Barack Obama is the worst president since World War II', Quinnipiac

It's a poll ranking of responses. President Cluster ranks first as the worst president since World War Two.

Here: "July 2, 2014 - Obama Is First As Worst President Since WWII, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; More Voters Say Romney Would Have Been Better."

Romney would have been so much better. It's sad to think how much better. It's sad to think how screwed we are. It's sad to think how hoodwinked the public is. Perhaps some folks are waking up, but we'll see how it shakes out in November.

VIDEO: Food Truck Explodes in Philadelphia

At MyFox Philadelphia, "Lunch Truck Explodes in Feltonville."

The 'Gates of Hell' Ajar in the Middle East

An outstanding commentary, from Monica Crowley, at the Washington Times.

She pulls all the strings together. Brief, to the point, hammering it home.

Near Rioting in #Murrieta Overnight as Obama Regime Dumps Illegal Aliens on Patriot Community

At KGTV-ABC10 News San Diego, "Hundreds rally outside Border Patrol office in Murrieta."

Patriots squaring off against amnesty backers waving Mexican flags.

PREVIOUSLY: "VIDEO: Murrieta Illegal Alien Protests Makes CBS 'Evening News' — #SecureTheBorder."

Dana Loesch Smacks Down Far-Left Pro-Abortion Hag Patricia Ireland

Man, Patricia Ireland.

Flashback to when? The 1990s, I guess.

She needs to go back to the future, lol.

And she should actually make her points instead of whining to Sean Hannity about "it's my turn, waahhh!!"

VIDEO: Murrieta Illegal Alien Protests Makes CBS 'Evening News' — #SecureTheBorder

Here's the background, "Outraged Murrieta Patriots Protest Illegal Alien Onslaught, Block Amnesty Buses! — #SecureTheBorder."

And what do you know?

Some serious national news coverage, amazingly neutral as well:

Brianna Keilar with Tara Maller on #Iraq — #SitRoom

Dr. Maller's on Twitter, and check her page at the New America Foundation.

Also at the clip is CNN counter-terrorism analyst Philip Mudd.

Serena Williams On-Court Breakdown at Wimbledon

Bizarre.

She's a dominant player. I don't know how she could go out there looking like she was on drugs. I guess it was a "viral" illness of some sort, but it's bad.

Many California Community College Students Need 4 Years to Graduate

At least 4 years.

But see the Los Angeles Times.

Yeah, it's worse, especially for minorities, "New Report Details Need to Increase College Completion and Close Success Gaps for Underrepresented Students at State’s Community Colleges." (That's from 2010, but it ain't getting any better.)

ADDED: The student pictured, Jeffrey MacGillivray, was student of mine this spring semester at Long Beach City College. At the Times he's seen at El Camino College in Torrance in 2012. It's interesting that he's shopping around, taking classes at different colleges. Usually when that happens students are unsuccessful, so they have to switch schools. I worked closely with Jeffrey, hoping to impart some sense of the importance of good attendance and punctuality, as I do for all of my classes. Also interesting is how all the students pictured have the smartphones out, texting and talking as soon as they get out of class.

Outraged Murrieta Patriots Protest Illegal Alien Onslaught, Block Amnesty Buses! — #SecureTheBorder

My good friend Douglas Gibbs, and his crew of local patriots in Murrieta, Ca., are on the front lines of the illegal alien crisis and they're not taking it anymore.

Here's Doug's post on not just the constitutional crisis, but the Third World disease epidemic spiraling over our borders, "Illegal Immigration Bio-Warfare."

Check that link.

Turns out Murrieta's patriot community has been holding protests, demanding that city leaders stem the tide. Most dramatically, they've blocked illegal aliens from unloading at the Murrieta Border Control compound.

Here's the background, at the Riverside Press-Enterprise, "IMMIGRATION: Debate continues over plan to use Murrieta facility." And at NBC Southern California, "Protesters Block Bus Carrying Immigrants."

And a video from CBS/KCAL News Los Angeles, "KCAL9's Tom Wait reports the Mayor Alan Long tried to reassure constituents their safety is not in jeopardy during a community meeting Monday":



MORE at Director Blue, "ROLL OUT THE WELCOME MAT: Ready for a Flood of Illegals to be Dumped in Your City or Town? By Tori Richards."

UPDATE: Linked at the Mad Jewess Woman's blog: "#SecureTheBorder - Americans Block Buses In California Transporting Diseased, Illegal Occupiers." Thanks!

ADDED: At the Los Angeles Times, "Protesters in #Murrieta block detainees' buses in tense standoff."

VIDEO: Netanyahu Speaks, Thousands Attend Funeral of Murdered Israeli Teens — #GiladEyalNaftali

At the Guardian UK, "Netanyahu speaks at burial service for three murdered Israeli teens – as it happened."

And at the Times of Israel, "Today has become a national day of mourning, PM says as teens buried."

Heh, Hot Adriana Lima for Kia Motors - #USA

Just saw this advertisement and tweeted.

Gotta admit those #KIA commercials with @AdrianaLima are freakin' hot, lol.

— Donald Douglas (@AmPowerBlog) July 1, 2014

USA and Belgium playing right now. Let's see how it goes. The enthusiasm is contageous.

Oh, more Adriana here.

San Francisco Gets Ready for Belgium vs. United States - #TeamUSA

Heh, you gotta love it.

At SFGate:

Before the big match, @footyheader reflects on the #USA's big #WorldCup run - and the fans. http://t.co/Ho4Vmfh4td pic.twitter.com/uddFgeBcij
— SFGate.com (@SFGate) July 1, 2014

Story here: "World Cup – Now, America Waits."

Cameron Diaz Strips Down for Esquire

Cameron Diaz has some all natural fitness book out with photos of her super-clean and fit body, so now she's taking her lovely curves to the movies.

At Fox News, "Cameron Diaz gets naked in 'Sex Tape' movie." And at USA Today, "A Cameron Diaz first: Naked on camera."

And going straight to Esquire, "THE EXCERPT: MEET CAMERON DIAZ, OUR NEWEST COVER STAR AND AN INCREDIBLE WHISTLER."

Not Gonna Take It! Huge Majorities Blame Obama for Illegal Alien Crisis, IRS Cover-Up, and Iraq

At IBD, "Americans Blame Obama: Poll."

Fifty-nine percent of those polled blame Obama for the flood of illegal aliens streaming over the border; a full 65 percent say the Obama administration is engaged in an IRS cover-up; and 56 percent say Obama's troop pull-out in 2011 caused the current crisis in Iraq.

We've seen the administration's numbers tanking for weeks. It's just over four months now until the November midterms. Democrats are going to be destroyed.

Officials Warn Against Extremely High #ISIS Threat to U.S. Homeland

At Twitchy, "Report: Terror threat against US targets from ISIS is ‘extremely high’."

Richard Engel reports:

US officials say #ISIS developing bomb making skills and foreign fighters that would enable it to target US, UK and Europe interests.

— Richard Engel (@RichardEngel) June 30, 2014

Airport Security to Tighten Amid Fears of New Generation of Terrorist Attacks

Following-up from almost a week ago, "#ISIS Developing Non-Metallic Explosives to Smuggle on Planes in New Wave of Islamic Terrorism."

At the Guardian Liberty Voice, "Airport Security May Tighten Due to Terrorist Bombs That Escape Detection."

Israel Launches Airstrikes in Gaza After Bodies of Murdered Teens Found

At Reuters, "Israel bombs Gaza sites hours after bodies of Israeli teens found," and at Bloomberg, "Israel Hits Gaza After Finding Bodies of Slain Teenagers."



Bloomberg says arrests have been made, but here's the Times of Israel, "Army vows to capture suspects in teens’ killing, ‘dead or alive’."

More later.

Indians at #Dodgers

I'm heading out to Chavez Ravine with my youngest boy for tonight's game.

Blogging should resume late night or in the morning, depending how beat I am.

The #Dodgers welcome Cleveland to Chavez Ravine at 7:10 PT. Preview: http://t.co/OSCNOvjmAG pic.twitter.com/dvuHR3Obc3

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) June 30, 2014

#Dodgers lineup vs. Indians: Gordon 2B Puig RF Gonzalez 1B Kemp LF Ethier CF Uribe 3B Ellis C Rojas SS Haren P

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) June 30, 2014

Supreme Court Rules for Hobby Lobby Religious Exemption on #ObamaCare Contraception Mandate

Obviously, a huge decision out of the Supreme Court today.

At LAT, "Supreme Court rules on contraceptives; setback for Obama healthcare law." And at NYT, "Updates on the Supreme Court’s Decision in Hobby Lobby Case," and "Supreme Court Rejects Contraceptives Mandate for Some Corporations."

Althouse has analysis, "The Supreme Court — in Hobby Lobby — upholds religious exemptions to Obamacare."

Radical leftists completely lost it.

At the Other McCain, "The #HobbyLobby Hysteria," and National Review, "Hobby Lobby Sparks Twitter Outrage on the Left."

Goodness gracious. RT @SheaDiamond: F**k you #hobbylobby keep your rosaries off my ovaries!!! #womensrights

— Bethany Bowra (@BethanyBowra) June 30, 2014

Plus lots more at Twitchy, "‘Fu*k you:’ Left-wingers want to ‘burn down’ Hobby Lobby after SCOTUS win," and "#BoycottHobbyLobby: Opponents say it’s time to ‘lynch’ a few corporations."

And at Memeorandum.

Three Kidnapped Israeli Teens Found Murdered in West Bank — #EyalGiladNaftali

At the Times of Israel, "Bodies of three kidnapped teens found."

"The three appeared to have been shot to death..."

At the New York Times, "Three Bodies Found Believed to Be Missing Israelis."

UPDATE: See the continuing coverage at Israel Matzav, "May God Have mercy - UPDATED; "NY Times: They were murdered shortly after they were kidnapped"; "Released from gag order: Shot heard on tape during call from Naftali Frenkel HY"D to police"; and "Report: IDF demolishing kidnapper/murderer's home."

Also more at the Times of Israel, "4 officers dismissed for response to kidnapped teen’s call."

ADDED: At Legal Insurrection, "Bodies of kidnapped Israeli teens found."

And again at the Times of Israel, "Dramatic developments regarding kidnapped teens," and "Hamas will pay, says PM, after bodies of kidnapped teens found."

Lois Lerner Death Threats? Well, Boo Freakin' Hoo

At CNN, FWIW, "Lois Lerner's attorney tells Candy Crowley about the threats against his client's life connected to the IRS scandal."

BONUS: At Legal Insurrection, "Darrell Issa: It’s Hard to Believe Lois Lerner Doesn’t Have Copies of Emails."

Montana's Billings Gazette Regrets Endorsing Barack Obama in 2008

At least the editors are honest enough to admit their colossal blunder.

At Legal Insurrection, "Newspaper That Endorsed Obama in 2008 Now Says He’s Worse Than Bush."

And from the Gazette's editors, "Obama earned the low ratings."

#ISIS Battle Loot Alters Balance of Power in #Iraq, Syria

At LAT, "ISIS weapons windfall may alter balance in Iraq, Syria conflicts":

Six months ago, Sunni Arab militants faced a daunting firepower imbalance in their uprising against the U.S.-equipped Iraqi army west of Baghdad.

But once their campaign for the city of Fallouja was launched in January, their lethal capabilities were bolstered from the stockpiles of the Iraqi armed forces.

Many soldiers fled, throwing down their weapons, which were picked up by the insurgents. Police stations and security posts overrun by Sunni militants yielded more martial booty to be turned against the forces of Prime Minister Nouri Maliki's Shiite Muslim-led government.

"Praise God, we soon had enough weapons to fight for one or two years," said Ahmad Dabaash, spokesman for the Islamic Army, a Sunni rebel faction, who spoke in a hotel lobby here in Iraq's northern Kurdistan region. "And now? Don't even ask!"

Keep reading.

Sunday Cartoons

At Flopping Aces, "Sunday Funnies."




Also at Randy's Roundtable, "Friday Nite Funnies," and at Reaganite Republican, "Reaganite's SUNDAY FUNNIES."

More at Leg Insurrection, "Branco Cartoon – Shrink Wrapper," and Theo Spark, "Cartoon Roundup..."

CARTOON CREDIT: William Warren.

Israeli Defense Forces Target #ISIS in Gaza: Jihadists Pledge to Destroy 'Zionist Regime'

At Algemeiner, "ISIS Now Openly Operating in Gaza – Flags Seen Waving at Funeral (VIDEO)."

And earlier at the Jerusalem Post, "Egypt arrests 15 ISIS militants in Sinai":

Egyptian special forces tracked and arrested a terrorist cell which had used tunnels to cross from Gaza into the Sinai Peninsula, Ma'ariv reported on Saturday. The 15 militants arrested belong to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

Further interrogation of the cell by Egyptian forces revealed that the group's intent was to relay messages and set up terrorist cells for the ISIS in Egypt, to fight the Egyptian government...

Still more from Michael Maloof, at WND, "IRAQ INVADERS THREATEN NUKE ATTACK ON ISRAEL: ISIS focus on 'destroying Zionist regime' to 'liberate Palestine'."

Arrival of Russian Military Advisers in #Iraq is Pointed Rebuke to Obama Administration

Well, anything Russia does at this point is a rebuke to Obama. Putin's got a free hand. No worries about any international repercussions, least of all from the United States.

At the New York Times, "Russian Jets And Experts Sent to Iraq to Aid Army":

BAGHDAD — Iraqi government officials said Sunday that Russian experts had arrived in Iraq to help the army get 12 new Russian warplanes into the fight against Sunni extremists, while the extremists declared their leader the caliph, or absolute ruler, of all jihadi organizations worldwide.

The Russian move was at least an implicit rebuke to the United States, which the Iraqis believe has been too slow to supply American F-16s and attack helicopters — although the United States is now in the process of providing both.

“In the coming three or four days the aircraft will be in service to support our forces in the fight” against the insurgents of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, said Gen. Anwar Hama Ameen, the commander of the Iraqi Air Force, referring to five SU-25 aircraft that were flown into Iraq aboard Russian cargo planes Saturday night, and two more expected later Sunday.

Also on Sunday, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria released a 34-minute audio recording of a speech by its official spokesman, Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, who said that the insurgency’s leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, was now the world’s caliph and as such had declared all other jihadi organizations void and under his direct control, according to the SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors extremists’ online presence.

The audio speech was released on an ISIS-linked Twitter feed, the group said....

In present-day Baghdad, the Iraqi Air Force commander, General Ameen, said that Russian military experts had arrived to help set up the new SU-25 warplanes, but that they would stay only a short time. The last five Russian aircraft would arrive by Monday, he said. Last week, President Obama ordered 300 American military advisers into the country, and the Iranians have reportedly sent advisers from their Republican Guards’ Quds Force. At least three United States Special Forces teams are said to have been deployed north of Baghdad in recent days, tasked with carrying out a survey of Iraqi forces to determine their condition and needs.

This was the first report of Russian military aides in the country, although General Ameen said they were experts, not advisers...

How #ISIS Builds Power and Support

I might be switching to the "IS" moniker pretty soon (with the new caliphate, and all), but for now, I'm staying with journalistic conventions.

From Thanassis Cambanis, at the Boston Globe, "The surprising appeal of ISIS."

Sarah Brandner World Cup Body Painting

From Sports Illustrated Swimsuit, "World Cup Body Painting: Sarah Brandner Wearing Nothing But PAINT!"

Katrina vanden Heuvel to Bill Kristol: 'You should, with all due respect, enlist in the Iraqi army...'

Heh, this is pretty good, via Sooper Mexican, "WATCH Lefty Liberal Take on Arch Neo-Con Bill Kristol: ‘Why Don’t YOU Enlist in The Iraqi Army?!’"

She's basically calling him a chicken hawk who should be tried for war crimes.

Hot Aida Yespica Bikini Pics

She's a former Venezuelan television personality and beauty contestant now living in Italy.

Looking good.

At Egotastic!, "Aida Yespica Bikini Pictures Hold Their Own and Then Some on Holiday in Spain."

BONUS: At Batshit Crazy News, "Side Boob Rule 5," and at Pirate's Cove, "Sorta Blogless Sunday Pinup."

ALLAHU AKBAR! — #ISIS Declares Creation of Middle East Caliphate: 'New Era of International Jihad'

At RT, "ISIS declares creation of Islamic state in Middle East, 'new era of international jihad'."

And at the Wall Street Journal, "ISIS Declares New Islamist Caliphate: Militant Group Declares Statehood, Demands Allegiance From Other Organizations."

BREAKING: #ISIS declares Caliphate, All muslims according to Sharia & hadith must give allegiance
— Al-Janabi #باقية (@AbuBakrAl_Janab) June 29, 2014

More at Jihad Watch, "ISIS/ISIL declares Islamic State, shortens name to “The Islamic State” (IS)":

They clearly intend to hold the territory they have captured. They’ve also declared Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi the new caliph; he claims to be a descendant of Muhammad, so it is possible that if they can make their state viable, this claim will gain currency. If that happens, it will be interesting to see how Muslims in the West react to the idea that he is the “leader for Muslims everywhere,” which historically was always a claim of the caliph.

Plus, an English-language ISIS propaganda video, "The End of Sykes - Picot":



Meanwhile, the blood continues to spill, at RT, "ISIS crucify eight anti-Assad fighters in Syria – watchdog."

More news on Twitter:

Muslims express their happiness over the declaration of the Islamic Caliphate. Photo is from Raqqa, Syria #ISIS pic.twitter.com/xljmGKLhnF
— ابنة الشيخ البغدادي© (@MujaahidaHafy) June 29, 2014

The caliphate was abolished when the Ottoman empire collapsed in 1924. May Allah allow us to now see it again, a unified & real one. #ISIS
— ابنة الشيخ البغدادي© (@MujaahidaHafy) June 29, 2014

The Khilafah has been reestablished. Saudi's reaction pic.twitter.com/7tuI1njmaB
— ﷲ MILLATU IBRAHIM ﷲ (@RadicalIslamist) June 29, 2014

#Syria: the Husba car on patrol in celebration of the announcement of Caliphate: pic.twitter.com/Al4ZhZNsY3
— Aymenn J Al-Tamimi (@ajaltamimi) June 29, 2014

Alhamdulilah. What a HISTORIC moment, shivers run down my spine hearing the announcement of the Islamic Caliphate- #KHILAFAH #ISLAMIC_STATE.
— ابويحيي الصومال (@AbuYahya_Somal) June 29, 2014

The Kuffar, Murtadin and Munafiqin have been preventing the rebirth of the Caliphate for years! DIE IN YOUR RAGE! The Khilafa has returned!
— Abu Yazan (@UtopianIslamist) June 29, 2014

Citizens of the Islamic state in the street partying after the proclamation of the Caliphate pic.twitter.com/OGQndPD6p4"
— Ak47 (@afaqbeig) June 29, 2014

Al Jazeera from Baghdad: "a caliphate is effectively an Islamic Republic led by one leader, regardless of national boundaries." #ISIS
— ابنة الشيخ البغدادي© (@MujaahidaHafy) June 29, 2014

#Palestine old woman cries after Zionist Rat's bulldozed her house.#Israel will be destroyed #IS coming for you pic.twitter.com/cJWjRF8jDB"
— Ak47 (@afaqbeig) June 29, 2014

A message from the Islamic Khilafa to all Jihadi groups worldwide who fight for tawhid #IS #Syria #Iraq pic.twitter.com/pb5e7Gtr3R
— Al-Janabi #باقية (@AbuBakrAl_Janab) June 29, 2014

This Is the Promise of Allah An announcement by Ash-Sheikh Abu Muhammad Adnaani http://t.co/wXR1xiXMzV #CaliphateRestored #KhilafaRestored"
— Ak47 (@afaqbeig) June 29, 2014

ISIS claims its spokesman AlAdnani was himself at #Syria #Iraq border demolishing official international borders pic.twitter.com/xepbOAaWuM
— Jenan Moussa (@jenanmoussa) June 29, 2014

#ISIS Forces Repel Counteroffensive at Tikrit, Bring Down Iraqi Helicopter — #Iraq

I don't see photos of the downed copter, but it's being reported at Haaretz, "ISIS militants shoot down Iraqi chopper as Tikrit assault enters 2nd day," and the Irish Times, "Militants bring down army helicopter over Tikrit."

Meanwhile, jihadists have repelled the government's counteroffensive.

At the Washington Post, "Militants repel Iraqi forces’ attempt to recapture Tikrit," and the Wall Street Journal, "Iraqi Forces Stalled in Push Against Militants, Say Officials: Government's Official Statements Say Tikrit Has Been 'Cleansed'":

BAGHDAD—Iraqi security forces were locked in a standoff outside the city of Tikrit on Sunday morning, local security officials said, as the military's most muscular effort to beat back a three-week-old Sunni insurgency appeared to stall.

The military offensive, which began Saturday afternoon after weeks of preparation, was hampered by extensive land-mine formations laid by insurgents on the main road between Samarra, the provisional headquarters of Iraqi forces north of Baghdad, and Tikrit, according to security forces at the Samarra Command Center.

Reports from the ground contradicted government statements carried by the official television station, which said Iraqi security forces had "cleansed" Tikrit and were preparing to recapture all of the surrounding Salah Al Din province in the coming hours.

But as of Sunday morning, Iraqi forces still hadn't succeeded in taking Tikrit, the birthplace of former President Saddam Hussein and a flash point in the Sunni-led resistance against American forces following the 2003 invasion, according to residents of the city...

Continue reading.

More at Euronews, "Tikrit battle continues as Iraq attempts to recapture town from ISIL."

Ahmed Abu Khattala Pleads Not Guilty

Yeah, "not guilty."

I'm sure it'd be a riot if the dude was acquitted. Indeed, leftists would cheer the verdict.

At LAT, "Suspect in Benghazi attack pleads not guilty; more charges expected."

Outrage Over SFSU 'Race and Resistance' Professor Rabab Abdulhadi

Professor Rabab Abdulhadi teaches in the "Race and Resistance" program of the Ethnic Studies Department at San Francisco State University.

AMCHA (the Israeli Center for Holocaust Survivors and the Second Generation) is protesting Professor Abdulhadi's recent trip to Jordan, where she met with Leila Khaled of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), which was financed with tax-payer funding.

Daniel Mael has the background, at Truth Revolt, "SFSU Professors Met with Terrorists Tied to American Deaths on Taxpayer's Dime":

A California Public Records Act inquiry revealed that multiple professors from San Francisco State University met with terrorists on a trip funded by the university. Professors Rabab Abdulhadi and Joanne Barker, along with Abdulhadi's husband, met with terrorists Leila Khaled and Sheikh Raed Salah during the "Labor Delegation to Palestine 2014" which began on January 5th, 2014 and concluded on February 14th, 2014.

Eight organizations- the AMCHA Initiative, Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, Institute for Black Solidarity with Israel, Proclaiming Justice to the Nations, Scholars for Peace in the Middle East, Simon Wiesenthal Center Campus Outreach, StandWithUs, and Zionist Organization of America- sent a letter to CSU Chancellor Timothy White, SFSU President Leslie Wong, CSU Vice Chancellor and Chief Audit Officer Larry Mendel and CSU Attorney Carrie Hemphill Reith concerning the matter.

Leila Khaled is "a convicted hijacker and the most famous member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a terrorist organization responsible for 159 terrorist acts such as bombings, armed assault and assassinations, resulting in numerous injuries and deaths including those of more than 20 US citizens," the groups noted.

Sheikh Raed Salah has been convicted of funding the terrorist organization Hamas and sat in prison from 2003 - 2005. In the letter to school administration the organizations also highlighted that, "In 2008, Salah was charged with incitement to violence and racism. In 2010, Salah was also arrested for his participation on the Mavi Marmara, part of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla. Salah was recently incarcerated again on charges of incitement to violence."

The letter to the university administration outlined Abdulhadi's dishonest approach to obtaining funding...

More here, "AMCHA and Jewish Organizations Write President Wong about Professor Abdulhadi and SFSU Faculty Event Condoning Terrorism."

Kenneth Monteiro, the Dean of SFSU College of Ethnic Studies, has defended Abdulhadi, "Dean of the College of Ethnic Studies Commentary on Free Speech and AMCHA Initiative’s attacks on students and faculty across California Campuses." And at Truth Revolt, "SFSU Ethnic Studies Dean: I Stand With Pro-Terror Research."

And here's the response from Professor Abdulhadi, "Public Statement: Rabab Abdulhadi Responds to AMCHA Allegations." And get a load of this:

AMCHA has predictably focused a huge amount of attention on our meeting with Leila Khaled, in an attempt to demonize the delegation and to damage my reputation. So let me clarify the purpose of meeting with Khaled. Khaled is a Palestinian feminist icon. She is therefore relevant to my research and pedagogy, both of which aim to revise Palestinian women’s studies by critiquing conventional wisdom within the feminist canon. In my courses, I aim to provide a counter narrative to the orientalist depictions of Palestinian, and other Arab and Muslim, women as weak and docile—and men as bloodthirsty and misogynist. To this end, I screen several films including “Leila Khaled: Hijacker?” and open these classes to the public.

Orientalist? Sounds like terror-supporting Middle East scholar (the late) Edward Said.

And screening films like "Leila Khaled: Hijacker?" Might as well screen "Triumph of the Will" and "open these classes to the public."

In any case, back over at Truth Revolt, "SFSU: We'll Fight 'Censorship' of Taxpayer-Funded Pro-Terror Trips by Professors."

Clearly, taxpayer monies funded meetings with terrorists. If such advocacy is legal under current law, the law should be changed. However, I don't buy this woman's explanation that all of this was on the up and up. You've pretty much lost the debate when you start screaming "McCarthyism."

GRAPHIC VIDEO: Shiite Forces Execute Scores of Sunni Prisoners in Tal Afar, #Iraq

Uh, about that new civil war in Iraq.

Arwa Damon reports, for CNN, "Iraqi witnesses recall horrors in Tal Afar, Mosul."

The report cites Amnesty International, "Iraq: scores of Sunni detainees summarily killed by government and Shi'a militias - new testimonies."

Before fleeing from Tal Afar, Maliki troops executed these #Sunni prisoners in the prison, #Iraq (#ISIS, #Iraqwar) pic.twitter.com/6LDf3mlk0I

— Abu Umar (@AbuUmar8246) June 28, 2014

Dozens of Casualities in Massive Bomb Blast at Marketplace Near Damascus, Syria

Video at Reuters, "Two car bombs hit Syrian market in Douma," and Vice, "Car Bomb Explosion Leaves Dozens Hurt in Eastern Damascus."

And according to the Daily Sabah, "CAR BOMB KILLS TWO, INJURES DOZENS NEAR DAMASCUS":

CAIRO – Two people were killed and dozens wounded when a car bomb exploded in a town on the outskirts of Damascus on Saturday, a rights watchdog reported.

The bomb struck a crowded market area in Douma town, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. Earlier this month, a bombing killed eight people in Douma.

Rebels accused the jihadist Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) of carrying out the attack against other Islamist groups fighting to oust the regime of President Bashar al-Assad...

And at Press TV, "Two killed as blast hits Syrian town of Douma."

The death toll could be higher.

#Iraq Troops Mount Defense to Save Baghdad

At the Los Angeles Times, "Iraqi forces dig in to keep militants from capturing Baghdad":

If the Sunni Muslim insurgents lurking west of Baghdad decide to rush the Iraqi capital, Ahmed Ali knows the quickest route runs past his fruit stand.

Peering at the highway over mounds of watermelon and bananas, Ali watches Iraqi army pickup trucks and personnel carriers race by — headed, he hopes, toward a battle somewhere.

“I feel relief when I see them,” said Ali, a Shiite Muslim in his 50s who took refuge in Abu Ghraib this year after insurgents seized his village. “Somehow, I feel the security forces will protect me.”

Facing a methodical onslaught by an Al Qaeda splinter group and antigovernment militants, soldiers, police and Shiite militias are digging in around Baghdad and at strategic points outside the capital in a desperate bid to prevent the pillars of Prime Minister Nouri Maliki’s Shiite-dominated government from falling to the insurgents.

With the deployment of security forces, bolstered by tens of thousands of volunteer fighters, Iraqi military officials say, Baghdad is not in immediate danger of a major attack. U.S. officials are less certain. Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby, the Pentagon spokesman, said this week that as the insurgents “continue to press into central and southern Iraq … they are still a legitimate threat to Baghdad.”

More.

PREVIOUSLY: "#Iraq Army Mounts Counteroffensive in Tikrit, Mosul."

VIDEO: Marine Capt. William Mahoney Lands AV-8B Harrier on Tiny Bench After Landing Gear Malfunction

Simply amazing.

At the Navy Times, "Marine Harrier pilot sticks incredible landing on tiny bench at sea."

Bin Laden's Caliphate Rises in #Iraq

At the Wall Street Journal, "The Caliphate Rises":

The jihadists of the Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham (ISIS) continue to consolidate their grip on Sunni Iraq. They control most major cities, they took over the border crossings with Jordan this week, and now they're re-opening banks and government offices and establishing political control.

Welcome to the new Middle East caliphate, a state whose leader is considered the religious and political successor to the prophet Mohammed and is thus sovereign over all Muslims. The last time a caliphate was based in Baghdad was 1258, the year it was conquered by the ravaging Mongols. Now the jihadists aim to do the ravaging, and it isn't clear that the Obama Administration has a plan to depose them.

It's important to understand how large a setback for American interests and security this is. Establishing a caliphate in the Middle East was the main political project of Osama bin Laden's life. Current al Qaeda leader Ayman al Zawahiri once said a new caliphate would signal a turning of world history "against the empire of the United States and the world's Jewish government."

In 2005, a Jordanian journalist named Fouad Hussein wrote a book on al Qaeda's "second generation," which focused on the thinking of terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was killed by U.S. forces in 2006. The book described a seven-phase plan, beginning with an "awakening" of Islamic consciousness with the September 11 attacks. Among other predictions, it foresaw an effort to "clear plans to partition Syria, Lebanon and Jordan into sectarian statelets to reshape the region."

In phase four, timed to happen between 2010 and 2013, the Arab world's secular regimes would be toppled. And then? Phase five would see the "declaration of the caliphate or Islamic state" sometime between 2013 and 2016. This was to be followed by "total war," or "the beginning of the confrontation between faith and disbelief, which would begin in earnest after the establishment of the Islamic caliphate."

Keep reading.

And keep all of this in mind next time you hear some leftist commentator claiming that ISIS isn't al Qaeda.

More, "#ISIS is Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's Dream Come True in Iraq."

#Iraq Army Mounts Counteroffensive in Tikrit, Mosul

From Ed Morrissey, at Hot Air, "Iraq launches offensive on ISIS in Tikrit, Mosul."

And at the New York Times, "In New Show of Force, Iraqi Army Drives Back Insurgents in Major City":

BAGHDAD — The Iraqi Army on Saturday drove Islamic extremists from the center of a major city in central Iraq, for the first time mounting a concerted assault against insurgents who had charged to within 50 miles of Baghdad.

Independent sources, including local officials and witnesses, confirmed that an Iraqi Army counteroffensive had driven militants of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria from the center of Tikrit, including from government buildings as well as from major roads and other positions throughout the city.

But fighting was still continuing, with Iraqi war planes bombing targets inside the city late in the afternoon.

Tikrit, the birthplace of Saddam Hussein, with a largely Sunni population of 250,000, is in the Tigris River Valley, 100 miles north of Baghdad. It has long been a stronghold of antigovernment Sunnis in Iraq, and losing it would sever the insurgents’ lines of communication to Mosul and Syria. It could also strand some of their fighters in pockets south of Tikrit.

Some Iraqi military analysts said they thought it was no coincidence that army’s counteroffensive was launched now, with 180 of the 300 American advisers ordered to Iraq by President Obama arriving over the past three days, but Iraqi officials denied that there was any American role.

If the advances by the Iraqi Army are sustained, and even built upon, it would provide a much needed morale boost for an army that lost as much as a fourth of its soldiers and equipment when ISIS overran Mosul, and has lurched from one embarrassment to another since then. It has given up the oil-rich city of Kirkuk to Kurdish forces. And it has lost all of its border crossing points with Syria and Jordan to the militants, ceding to them control of most of four major provinces spanning more than 200 miles from north to south.

A spokesman for the Iraqi military, Gen. Qassim Atta, claimed that ISIS militants were withdrawing and that they had buried their dead on the grounds of a former Hussein palace in Tikrit. “Reports and surveillance show that ISIS leaders have ordered a retreat,” he said...

More.

And at Business Week, "Iraqi Army Starts Assault to Dislodge Sunni Militants."

More Than Two-Thirds of American Youth Wouldn't Qualify for Military Service, Pentagon Says

This is interesting.

At WSJ, "Recruits' Ineligibility Tests the Military":

More than two-thirds of America's youth would fail to qualify for military service because of physical, behavioral or educational shortcomings, posing challenges to building the next generation of soldiers even as the U.S. draws down troops from conflict zones.

The military deems many youngsters ineligible due to obesity, lack of a high-school diploma, felony convictions and prescription-drug use for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. But others are now also running afoul of standards for appearance amid the growing popularity of large-scale tattoos and devices called ear gauges that create large holes in earlobes.

A few weeks ago, Brittany Crippen said she tried to enlist in the Army, only to learn that a tattoo of a fish on the back of her neck disqualified her. Determined to join, the 19-year-old college student visited a second recruiting center in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and was rejected again.

Apologetic recruiters encouraged her to return after removing the tattoo, a process she was told would take about year. "I was very upset," Ms. Crippen said...

More.

I like tattoos, although I personally never seriously considered getting one, even back in the day. But those "ear gauge" things? So disgusting. I can't even look at people who have them. They're literally deformed.

Are You an American Citizen?

Some drivers are refusing to identify themselves as U.S. citizens when asked by the Border Patrol.

At KABC-15 Phoenix, "Refusing to answer Border Patrols' questions could have consequences, says attorney."

Sophisticated Tactics Key to #Isis Strength

A report at the Financial Times, via Mike Shedlock, "Divided Iraq Inevitable; Isis Targets Baghdad Green Zone; Obama's Inane Weapon's Proposal."

It's a lot of cut-and-paste, but here's the interesting part on ISIS, from FT:

“They [Isis] are going against a supposedly professional military force with a speed and ferocity that has the Iraqis taking to their heels,” says Patrick Skinner, a former counter-terrorism officer at the Central Intelligence Agency and now analyst at the Soufan Group. “The Iraqi Security Forces [ISF] are mind-crushingly inept.”

Of immediate concern is the seizure by the jihadis of a range of high-grade military equipment. A force once lightly armed with an arsenal of shoulder-held missile launchers and anti-aircraft guns mounted on pick-up trucks, Isis is now far more comprehensively kitted out, thanks to its raids on the depots of the Iraqi army’s second motorised division.

Identifying exactly what the jihadi group has in its armoury is complicated because it has been wildly embellishing its capabilities for effect on social media. But even a conservative list – corroborated by intelligence and military officials – is worrying enough. It includes unknown quantities of M114 Humvees, other armoured personnel carriers and Stinger missiles, as well as a huge cache of explosives and small arms and an unspecified number of M198 155m howitzer artillery pieces with a conventional range of 22km.

In July 2012, Isis – then still known as al-Qaeda in Iraq – began the first of two intensive insurgency campaigns that paved the way for its current fight.

“These were intelligent campaigns in design: well-resourced, prepared, executed and adapted,” says Jessica Lewis, a veteran US army intelligence officer who served in Iraq and is now research director at the Institute for the Study of War. “These are not things I might associate with a terrorist organisation. These are things I associate with an army.”

All of which raises questions about just how big Isis is. US intelligence officials posit a central fighting force of 3,000. Military and intelligence analysts put the minimum size of Isis’s larger force at 7,000 to 10,000. “They are not spreading themselves too thinly,” says Ms Lewis.

“They have matched personnel to their objectives carefully.”

As to what those objectives are, Isis’s attack pattern now seems to point squarely in one direction.

“Isis has uncommitted forces proximate to Baghdad,” says Ms Lewis. “They always meant to establish control. They always meant to break the state. They want Baghdad.” And specifically, she adds, the government-protected Green Zone...

Embassy Threats: Overseas Facilities May Face Greater Risks Due to Gaps in Security-Related Activities

At the Daily Signal, "GAO Report: U.S. Embassies at Risk Because of Security Gaps":

Security at U.S. diplomatic posts is falling short, and Benghazi is only the most visible example.

A new report on “Diplomatic Security” by the Government Accountability Office — GAO-14-655 — demonstrates the problem is systemic, leaving U.S. personnel serving overseas at unnecessary risk. At a time of rising security threats from metastasizing Al Qaeda spinoffs and other terrorist groups, this problem must be addressed immediately at the State Department.

According to the report, State conducts a range of activities to manage risk at overseas work facilities, including the setting of security standards. But GAO found State lacked a fully developed risk management policy to coordinate these activities. It is unclear what standards apply to some facilities, and in others, it took eight years for standards to be identified.

The report identified other deficiencies, including...

Keep reading.

What Did Happen Exactly to James Hong, David Wang, and George Chen?

I'm really disliking this 20/20 Barbara Walters interview with Peter Rodger, Elliot Rodger's dad.

I might blog it tomorrow. I think Mr. Rodger is lying about how "surprised" he was at his son's rampage. He even sees his son as the "victim," not the perpetrator. (Or he thought his son was the "victim" when he first got news from Isla Vista.)

Meanwhile, here's the front-page report out a week or so ago at the Los Angeles Times "UCSB friends were victims of circumstance."

Also, "Elliot Rodger may have used knife, hammer, machete in killings, attorney says."

U.S. Deploys Armed Drones Over Baghdad — #Iraq

David Martin reports, for CBS Evening News:

Suicide Bomber Kills Six in Kirkuk, #Iraq

Intense scene.

Yesterday, at Russia Today, "Six die in northern Kirkuk, as ISIS militants fight bloody war in Iraq."

Obama Pitches a Shutout at the Supreme Court on Recess Appointments

A great editorial from this morning's Wall Street Journal, "Senate 9, President 0":

The Supreme Court handed President Obama his 13th unanimous loss in two years on Thursday, and this one may be the most consequential. All nine Justices voted to overturn Mr. Obama's non-recess recess appointments as an unconstitutional abuse of power.

Over nearly 238 years of American history, the Supreme Court has never had to review the President's authority to temporarily fill vacant executive offices when Congress is adjourned. Mr. Obama's 2012 maneuver to void the Senate's advice and consent role triggered a judicial intercession, and defeats at the High Court are seldom as total as this one...

Keep reading.

PREVIOUSLY: "Supreme Court Limits Presidential Power in Recess Appointments."

Obama's Bulked-Up Plan to Aid Rebels Deepens U.S. Role in #Syria

Following-up on my last post, "#ISIS Commander Abu Omar Photographed in Tent Marked 'U.S. Agency for International Development'."

Now here's more at the Wall Street Journal, "Obama Administration Deepens U.S. Role in Syria and Iraq: Funding and Arming Fighters Presents Risks, Officials Say":

PARIS—The Obama administration ended the week deeply immersed in stemming crises in Iraq and Syria as it launches a new strategy that American and Arab officials acknowledge could be risky for the U.S. and its closest Mideast allies.

Days of high-stakes Middle East diplomacy on a trip Secretary of State John Kerry completed Friday, combined with a $500 million plan for supporting Syrian rebels announced the day before by the White House, outline a markedly expanded U.S. role in the region's chaotic security and political landscape.

A primary risk for the administration is that much of the strategy rests on the removal of Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki from office, an outcome that remains deeply uncertain, according to these officials, as Baghdad embarks next week on the task of picking a new national government.

Washington's new approach also entangles the administration in a volatile thicket of interests held by America's friends and foes. Taking on a larger share of responsibility in Iraq and Syria, President Barack Obama finds himself funding a war against President Bashar al-Assad in Syria, but aligned with the Syrian strongman in the fight against Islamic extremists who are seizing control across Iraq.

"It's a devilishly difficult circumstance to confront," said former Democratic Sen. Kent Conrad. "My experience in that part of the world is you better be very modest about what you think you are going to achieve…in part because we're stepping into what is in essence a family feud."

Mr. Kerry ended his weeklong trip to the Middle East and Europe on Friday in Saudi Arabia, in a visit that brought the Iraq and Syria crises into a single frame. The U.S. diplomat held meetings in the Red Sea city of Jeddah with Saudi King Abdullah as well as with Ahmed Jarba, head of Syria's main political opposition coalition.

Mr. Kerry noted that Mr. Jarba "represents a tribe that reaches right into Iraq," and would be crucial to countering the insurgents of the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, or ISIS. Like King Abdullah's mother and some of his wives, Mr. Jarba is a member of the Shammar tribe, whose ranks sprawl across the adjoining borders of Syria, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

Mr. Jarba, however, said the situation in Iraq is different than Syria. He said Mr. Maliki's divisive approach calls for "greater efforts on the part of the U.S. and regional powers to address the situation in Iraq."  Mr. Kerry, in the week's meetings with Middle East leaders in Paris, Baghdad, Erbil and Jeddah, sought to forge a regional consensus among Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds to create a new Iraqi government that is more representative of the country's three main communities and unified in the fight against ISIS.

But after a week of intense pressure, the Iraqi leader so far has offered no sign that he is willing to leave office. Many U.S. and Arab officials acknowledge that Washington and its allies may not be able to refrain from military action against ISIS while Baghdad sorts out its political divisions, due to advances by the al Qaeda-linked militia.

If Mr. Maliki does leave office in the selection process that begins next week in Baghdad, the administration will face a vexing choice: Get more deeply involved in a country that has little chance of holding together, or watch 10 years of U.S. investment disappear in the carnage.

U.S. officials also are contemplating military strikes against ISIS sites in Syria, a move Mr. Obama has struggled for years to avoid. Washington's closest Mideast allies—whose support Mr. Obama critically needs to execute his Iraq strategy—are pressing the White House to strike ISIS inside Syria.

"If there are bad guys and they represent a threat, you have to hit them wherever they are," said a senior Arab official who has taken part in discussions about ISIS with the U.S. in recent days. "I think they understand this now. I also think they understand how dangerous not dealing with them is."

New Emmy Rossum Pics

Following up from Monday, "Emmy Rossum Spotted in West Hollywood."

Here's more of the young lady at Popoholic, "Emmy Rossum Puts on a Ridiculously Sexy Post-Workout Show!"

#ISIS Commander Abu Omar Photographed in Tent Marked 'U.S. Agency for International Development'

It's not a new photo. Pamela Geller had this last September, "Al Qaeda group in Syria enjoying USAID." As did Robert Spencer, "Al Qaeda-linked Syria group enjoying USAID?":

In any case, if this photo is real, it indicates yet again that our leadership in Washington is utterly clueless, and that their assurances that we are aiding only “moderates” are completely hollow.

According to the Religious Freedom Coalition:

The tent is part of the “non-lethal” aid that President Barack Obama bragged about sending to Syria’s “legitimate” resistance and civilians. Most news sites say the photo “purports” to be of Kavkaz wa Sham, however, the placement of the shadows clearly shows that this photo has not been photo-shopped.

Whatever. Regardless of the authenticity of the photo, Abu Omar is indeed in Syria, as reported earlier at the Long War Journal, "Chechen commander leads Muhajireen Brigade in Syria." And at the BBC, "Syria crisis: Omar Shishani, Chechen jihadist leader."

According to Wikipedia, Abu Omar:

...was named commander of the northern sector of Syria by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in the summer of 2013. Units under his command have participated in major assaults against Syrian military bases in and around Aleppo, including the capture of Menagh Airbase in August 2013.[2] He is considered "one of the most influential military leaders of the Syrian opposition forces."

This is all the more important now in light of the Obama administration's approval of at least $500 million in military aid for the "moderate" rebels in Syria. See the Wall Street Journal, "Obama Proposes $500 Million to Aid Syrian Rebels: Program to Train and Equip Moderate Opposition Would Expand U.S. Role in Civil War":

WASHINGTON—The White House on Thursday proposed a major program to train and arm moderate Syrian rebels, in a significant expansion of the U.S. role in a civil war that officials fear is bleeding into Iraq and across the region.

The Obama administration requested $500 million—a larger amount than expected—to aid the Syrian opposition, reflecting growing U.S. alarm at the expanding strength of Islamist forces in Syria, who in recent weeks have asserted control of large parts of neighboring Iraq and now pose threats to U.S. allies in the region.

Coming on the heels of a decision to send 300 military advisers to Iraq, the Syrian rebel training elevates the U.S. role in the Middle East.

The proposal amounts to a major U-turn by the administration, which had sought until now to limit its involvement in the war.

However, the expanded U.S. involvement will be on President Barack Obama's terms, by emphasizing the use of partner forces, and not the direct use of American combat forces.

Speaking at a town-hall meeting in Minneapolis on Thursday, Mr. Obama emphasized that he didn't want U.S. forces fighting in the Middle East, but said recent violence has focused attention on the region.

"We've got to pay attention to the threats that are emanating from the chaos in the Middle East," Mr. Obama said.

Officials stressed there are hurdles to overcome before the expanded Syrian rebel program goes into effect, including obtaining congressional approval; figuring out how to effectively vet large numbers of rebel fighters so the U.S. doesn't end up training extremists; and persuading countries in the region to host the effort.

Officials said the program may not actually begin until next year. They said the first batch of fighters could complete training roughly six to eight months after the proposed program is authorized and funded by Congress.

Still, the move amounts to an about face by an administration that had sought to strictly limit its role in the Syrian civil war.  Related Iraq Parliament to Start Talks on New Government Think Tank: Addressing the Conflict in Syria Is the Way to Move Forward in Iraq...

Yeah, "vetting" the extremists might be important, yo.

'Americans Will Shed a River of Blood' — #ISIS Threatens U.S. in Social Media Propaganda Campaign

Jenan Moussa reports:

ISIS threatens U.S: 'If United States bomb #Iraq, every American citizen is a legitimate target for us' Read http://t.co/MeeqRtvRqK @akhbar

— Jenan Moussa (@jenanmoussa) June 27, 2014

This is the hashtag used by ISIS supporters all over the world to threaten/ warn U.S not to bomb #Iraq ----> #CalamityWillBefallUS

— Jenan Moussa (@jenanmoussa) June 27, 2014

And at the Investigative Project on Terrorism, "Emboldened ISIS Threatens Americans, and the Jewish Journal of Greater L.A., "ISIS propaganda campaign threatens U.S."

Bill Clinton Blames George W. Bush for #Obama Administration's Complete Capitulation to Global Jihad

Utter shameless political opportunism from the disgraced president whose own policy the George W. Bush administration implemented in the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Once again, the left proves it will do anything to cling to power, even when all objective analyses see the current Middle East meltdown as the worst crisis in American national security since the Carter era.

At Pat Dollard's, "Bill Clinton Blames Bush for Return to Power of Al Qaeda in Iraq After Obama Recklessly Removed All U.S. Troops, Bases."

Also at WSJ, "Bill Clinton Calls Dick Cheney’s Attacks on Obama ‘Unseemly’."

And see National Review, "After Supporting War, Bill Clinton Now Blames Bush for Iraq."



BONUS: Dick Cheney responds, "Former Vice President Dick Cheney goes after Obama at energy trade show."

Mississippi Tea Party Leader Mark Mayfield Dead of Apparent Suicide

At the Jackson Clarion-Ledger, "Update: Tea party leader Mayfield dead of apparent suicide."

Also at the Los Angeles Times, "Mississippi tea party leader arrested in bizarre photo scandal is dead":

Tea party official Mark Mayfield, charged in connection with a scandal involving photos of Mississippi Sen. Thad Cochran's ailing wife, has been found dead and police said they suspect suicide.

Ridgeland Police Chief Jimmy Houston said the body of Mayfield, who was an attorney, was found Friday morning at his house outside Jackson, Miss., and that a suicide note was found at the scene, the Associated Press reported.

Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant released a statement early Friday...

More at Twitchy, "Reports: Mississippi attorney charged in Cochran nursing home photo scandal commits suicide."